Improvement in sole-fastenings



UNITED STATES PATENT QFFIGE.

FRANK O. TOBEY, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

lM PROVEM ENT IN S OLE-FASTENINGS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 169,062, dated October19, 1875; application filed May 18, 1875.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK O. TOBEY, of Boston, Suffolk county,Commonwealth of Massachusetts, have invented Improvements inSole-Fastenings, of which the following is a specification:

This invention relates to fastenings for uniting leather, and chieflyfor uniting the uppers and soles in the manufacture of boots and shoes;and this invention consists in a tapering nail composed of a series ofconnected conic frustums, arranged substantially as described, wherebythe base of one cone furnishes the outer head, and the apex of anothercone the point. The apex of the point-forming cone is prolonged to alength greater than the diameter of its base, and this apex above thepoint is preferably reduced in diameter to weaken the nail a littleabove the extreme point, and to insure that the apex shall bend readilyat its smallest diameter and clinch rather than rivet. The small centralpoint of the nail can be readily introduced into the awlhole, and thenail can be driven after but a partial operation of the awl. The base ofeach cone acts as a head to hold the leather on the body of the nail,and the leather ispinched and bound tightly between the clinched pointon one side and each base, they all acting as a series of heads, andpreventing movement of the leather over the body of the nail away fromthe clinched point. When driving the nail the set given the leather bythe blow of the hammer is held and retained through'the action of thehead-like cones and the clinching-point. The leather becomes embeddedbetween the spaces about the body of the nail.

Figure 1 represents one of my improved shoe nails. Fig. 2 representssuch a nail driven into, clinched, and shown as holding together twoplates of leather. Fig. 3 represents the heads of the nails as theyappear when driven into the sole.

0n the drawing, the nail a, is shown as composed of a number ofconnected conic frustums, b, the base 0 of the uppermost frustum servingas a head, and each intermediate frustum as an additional head. The apexd of the frustum which serves the purpose of a point for the nail, iselongated for a distance greater than the diameter of its'base, and ate, a short distance above the extreme point f, the apex is reduced insize to weaken the apex, so that it will first bend at e, and thisinsures a proper amount of the nail for clinching purposes, andovercomes the liability of the point riveting, as might often be thecase if the nail were driven straight and were not weakened at e.

A shoe-nail to operate properly must clinch and embed its point in theinner sole.

A nail constructed as described holds the plates of leather forming theshoe-sole very firmly together. This nail is produced from a wire scoredor cut away by means of a suitable tool, so as to form the frustums.

-Having described my invention, I claim- A shoe'nail, substantially asdescribed, composed of a series of connected conic frustums of varyingdiameter, forming a tapering nail and with an elongated point-formingapex, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification. in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

, FRANK O. TOBEY.

Witnesses:

G. W. GREGORY, L. H. LATIMER.

